Law firm news
Legal developments
- Excessive credit card fees to the axe, come 1 September (30 August 2016)
- Workplace bullying – Bullying doesn’t just happen in the schoolyard (20 June 2016)
Law explainers

So, should you talk to the police?
We look at the right to silence under Western Australian law and how you should deal with questions from the police. It is a question people often ask. So, should you talk to the police? The answer, according to experienced Perth criminal lawyer Max Crispe, is ...
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Bitcoin’s GST status resolved from 1 July 2017
Come 1 July 2017, businesses that transact in Bitcoin will be relieved by a change in the cryptocurrency's treatment under Australia's Goods and Services Tax scheme. The Federal Government has confirmed, in budget papers, that Bitcoin will be treated like a currency and not a ...
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457 visa abolition keeps employers and immigration lawyers busy
The abolition of the 457 visa scheme by the Turnbull government has left employers and immigration lawyers with quite some work to do. On 18 April 2017, the Federal Government abolished the 457 visa programme in favour of a new Temporary Skills Shortage visa scheme ...
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Tougher sentencing laws not a good idea
Tougher sentencing laws, as proposed in Victoria by Opposition Leader Matthew Guy, are not a good idea according to seasoned criminal lawyers. Guy is proposing a "two strikes" rule for repeat offenders, which would impose minimum mandatory sentences and take discretion away from sentencing judges ...
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Splitting up (part two)? What about Fido?
We have written previously about how a property settlement can be a quick and cost-effective method to finalise financial matters with your ex-partner. Parting couples may have arranged the division of the finances and decided who keeps the TV and who takes the porcelain vase, but may be left with one last question ...
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High Court rules that NT paperless arrest laws are valid
The High Court of Australia has upheld the validity of the Northern Territory's "paperless arrest" laws, after a constitutional challenge by the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency. The Agency had argued that the paperless arrest laws, contained within amendments to the Police Administration Act, violated the principle ...
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Don’t let a Division 7A loan burn a hole in your pocket
Small businesses should be familiar with the rules on Division 7A loans. Under Division 7A of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936, loans or payments to a shareholder of a company can be treated as a dividend under the tax laws. And that can be ...
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/ Tax law

Sydney firm launches first VW class action in Australia
Sydney law firm Bannister Law has brought the first class action in Australia against the Volkswagen and Audi car manufacturers for programming their diesel vehicles to defeat emissions standards. The action, commenced last month in the Federal Court, relates to the use of so-called “defeat ...
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Jetstar and Virgin Australia breached Australian Consumer Law with drip pricing conduct
The Federal Court ruled yesterday, on 17 November 2015, that airlines Jetstar and Virgin Australia had engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct with 'drip pricing' behaviour. Drip pricing, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, is "where a headline price is advertised at the beginning of ...
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Immigration detention for New Zealanders “repugnant and unnecessary”
The issue of New Zealand citizens in Australian immigration detention, including at offshore centres such as Christmas island, has been raised in LawPoints, a publication of the New Zealand Law Society. There are approximately 200 New Zealand citizens in immigration detention, many likely awaiting the outcome ...
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